Giant after sale service not so big

[BurtSlabbert]

You are welcome to buy my pcx-2 Giant front wheel for R500.00

[sometime]

PXCR1 is actually a pretty good wheelset as far as stock wheelsets go. I also broke one at World Masters XCO last year. They do come up for sale here occasionally or try you LBS where someone has 'upgraded' from them on their new bike.

[DJR]

Don't listen to everyone trashing the Giant rims. They just keep repeating stories from a few years ago. The 2013 and 14 wheels are much better than people give them credit for. Giant bought DT Swiss to help upgrade their wheels.

 

As for Giants' (Dragon Sports) after sales service - One of my sons ride a Giant Anthem that had a generic Giant shock. It lasted several years and the rebound packed up, so I sent it in for a service. They told me the parts were not available anymore, but offered me a Fox RP2 at cost. A good deal that I jumped at. Talk to them nicely and reasonably, you never know what great deal you manage to get out of them.

 

If Dragons cannot supply you with an identical rim, buy another brand (DT Swiss? WTB?) and just take all the decals off before re-building the front wheel. (Rim for R400 Labour R250 = R650 If you can find a whole matching wheel for less, go that route.) Point is, you do the maths carefully before deciding.

 

If you want to upgrade, then replace both front and back wheel, but get something truly better, not just more bling. That'll cost you R 5500 at the very least.

[Skubarra]

Don't listen to everyone trashing the Giant rims. They just keep repeating stories from a few years ago.

 

Not all of them, some of them like me actually owns a 2013 Giant, and I know a few fellow Giant owners who share my sentiments.

 

Maybe they are not the worst stock wheelsets you can get, but if I was going through the effort to replace a wheel I would have used the opportunity to upgrade because that's the first thing I want to upgrade on my Giant. Kind of in line with the last sentence of your post.

[Warren_G]

Those are crappy wheels anyway Perfect opportunity to upgrade...

Agreed...Crest ZTR's should do the trick.

[Sephton]

Sooo, I have a the PXC-2 on my bike and also looking to upgrade. Would something in the R5500 price range like ZTR Crest, AC Race, or Shimano XT be much lighter?

 

Sorry for the slight high-jack...

[DJR]

Sooo, I have a the PXC-2 on my bike and also looking to upgrade. Would something in the R5500 price range like ZTR Crest, AC Race, or Shimano XT be much lighter?

 

Sorry for the slight high-jack...

 

R5500 gets you Hope hubs and ZTR rims from Chris Willemse Cycles, currently on special I think. And yes, that would be a worthwhile upgrade. Not sure of the weight, but should be significantly lighter.

[Flowta]

Don't listen to everyone trashing the Giant rims. They just keep repeating stories from a few years ago. The 2013 and 14 wheels are much better than people give them credit for. Giant bought DT Swiss to help upgrade their wheels.

 

As for Giants' (Dragon Sports) after sales service - One of my sons ride a Giant Anthem that had a generic Giant shock. It lasted several years and the rebound packed up, so I sent it in for a service. They told me the parts were not available anymore, but offered me a Fox RP2 at cost. A good deal that I jumped at. Talk to them nicely and reasonably, you never know what great deal you manage to get out of them.

 

If Dragons cannot supply you with an identical rim, buy another brand (DT Swiss? WTB?) and just take all the decals off before re-building the front wheel. (Rim for R400 Labour R250 = R650 If you can find a whole matching wheel for less, go that route.) Point is, you do the maths carefully before deciding.

 

If you want to upgrade, then replace both front and back wheel, but get something truly better, not just more bling. That'll cost you R 5500 at the very least.

 

Only thing I would change, is exchange the alu nipples for brass as soon as possible, and this goes for ANY wheelset.

 

Also if you buy OEM or premade wheels, getting a skilled wheelbuilder to check them over is not a bad idea either.

[Caerus]

Only thing I would change, is exchange the alu nipples for brass as soon as possible, and this goes for ANY wheelset.

 

Also if you buy OEM or premade wheels, getting a skilled wheelbuilder to check them over is not a bad idea either.

How long should a wheelset with ali nipples last before things start going pear shaped? Never had any problems with Ali nipples on any bike.

[Flowta]

How long should a wheelset with ali nipples last before things start going pear shaped? Never had any problems with Ali nipples on any bike.

 

That's a how long is a piece of string question I'm afraid.

 

Depends on where and how you ride I guess.

 

I bought a set of Giant wheels, a couple of the nipples broke so replaced with brass.

 

Brass are stronger and not likely to corrode.

[TrackJack]

I was actually quite satisfied with the stock Giant P-XCR1 wheels. For a hub, spoke and rim assembly at 799grams they are actually not that fragile. They provided me with a years service with absolutely no trouble despite some spirited riding. The front wheel only bent when I stuck it in a ditch.

 

Unfortunately the feedback from Dragon Sport is that they do not have that rim available, and won't have it available for another three months. The DT Swiss rim is an option, but model that compares favorably, and that is available in 28h, is the XR 400 and that is quite a bit more expensive than R400. (think +- R1500 is bought through a bike shop)

 

I am not at the moment inclined to upgrade the entire wheel set at a cost of R5000 to R6000.

[camelman]

If it was me, I would just suck it up and get 2 new Arch EX rims and get that rebuilt on your existing hubs. Try negotiating and see if they will cover some of the rebuild cost. Those Giant hoops suck big time and are heavy as hell. Had them and could not be happier upgrading to a set of Arch EX's. Always used to struggle with them and tubeless tires. Now I can seat a tire even, without sealant.

[Tumbleweed]

I am not looking for a free replacement. I am looking to buy a new rim.

 

Have you tried asking them for a whole wheel?

[NotSoBigBen]

I would suggest you pop along to your nearest Game or Makro I'm sure they can help

[Jewbacca]

How long should a wheelset with ali nipples last before things start going pear shaped? Never had any problems with Ali nipples on any bike.

 

So the steel spoke/alu nipple thing is not just an opinion or bad experience vibe.

 

It is a real scientific thing. There is a chemical reaction and oxidation occurs. This will seize the spokes in the nipples so you will find that you cant really true the wheel after a while and if failure or severe impact happens, the spokes either break off just above the nipple, the nipples sheer OR (the worst of the lot and it happens a lot on stans rims) the nipple is pulled through the rim.

 

Brass nipples all the way.

 

Alu may have cool colours and look bling but they are rubbish. Scientific fact, true story, the end!

[Danger Dassie]

So the steel spoke/alu nipple thing is not just an opinion or bad experience vibe.

 

It is a real scientific thing. There is a chemical reaction and oxidation occurs. This will seize the spokes in the nipples so you will find that you cant really true the wheel after a while and if failure or severe impact happens, the spokes either break off just above the nipple, the nipples sheer OR (the worst of the lot and it happens a lot on stans rims) the nipple is pulled through the rim.

 

Brass nipples all the way.

 

Alu may have cool colours and look bling but they are rubbish. Scientific fact, true story, the end!

 

Which is why any wheelbuilder worth their salt uses an oil/loctite on the spoke threads before building up a wheel.

Even wheels with brass nipples are rendered *** useless if they're built by gorilla paws ....